Pencil



March 27, 192s. 1,664,274

F. J. ViERLlNG PENCIL Filed Aug. e. 1927 i Jin/maza@ wn/r J /Av/i/'y Patented Mar.. 27, 192,8.

UNITED ST "il T E S 1,664,274 omen.

FRANK. J'. VIERIING, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT` AND MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO SNAP-POINT PENCIL, INC., OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNE-V SOTA, A CORPORATION OF MINNESOTA.

PENCIL.

Application filed August 6, 1927. Serial No. 211,235..

My present invention has for its object to provide an extremely simple and highly eflicient pencil, and to this end it consists of the novelI devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, which'illustrate the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings Fig. 1 is a view of the improved pencil principally in longitudinal central section;

Fig. 2 is a view of the pencil in elevation with thev outer casing member removed;

Fig. 8 is a detail view with, some parts sectioned on thev line 33 of Fig. 1, on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary detail view in longitudinal central section taken throughV the telescoped'portions of the casing members; and

Fig. 5 is a view corresponding to Fig. 1, but showing a slight modification.

The pencil includes a casing comprising inner and outer tubular members 6 and 7 telescopically connected for relative longitudinal adjustment. Said inner casing member 6 has a long external screw thread 8 pressed in the body thereof, and said outer casing member 7 has a short internal screw thread 9 pressed in the body thereof and within which the thread 8 is seated. The outer or upper end portion of the inner casing member 6 is circumferentially expanded at 10 to receive and removably hold yan eraser 11. This expanding ofthe inner casing member 6 forms therein an internal annular shoulder 12, for a purpose that will presently appear. The lower or outer end portion of the outer casing member 7 is drawn to a long -tapered point 13 having a lead passage 14 at its contracted end and through which a lead may be endwise fed and held against lateral movement. 1

Extending longitudinally within the casing 6-7, at the axis thereof, is a long leadfeeding stem 15 having on its upper end a washer-like spring plate 16, which loosely rests on the shoulder 12. Said stem 15 extends loosely through a hole in the plate 16 at the center thereof and is bent laterally to form a head 17 which bears on the upper surface of said plate and holds the leadvfeeding stem 15 suspended therefrom.

A combined lead-holder and ejector 18 is applied to the lower end portion of the leadfeeding stem 15 for holding a lead the upper end of which engages the lower end of said stem as a base of resistance.' This leadholder and ejector 18 is in the form ofa axial alignment therewith. The slotl 19 and stop lug 20 limit the projecting movement of the lead-holder and ejector 18 on the leadfeeding stem 15, and by anl upward sliding movement of said holder and ejector on said stem, the lead may be ejected therefrom.

The inner casing member 6 is longitudinally rslit at 21 transversely through the thread 8 and throughout the full length thereof to permit contracting and expanding movements of the inner casing member 6 onto the outer casing member 7. The inner casing member 6 is further slit circumferentially thereof at the inner end of the slit 21 and' extending in opposite directions transversely thereof, as indicated at 22. vThe purpose of this slit 22 is to permit substantially the same circumferential contraction to project the lead a' by holding'the casing member 7 in one hand with the thumb o n the eraser 11 and applying pressurethereto to cause an endwise movement of the inner casing member 6 in the outer casing memberV over the screw thread 9 with a lratchet-likeaction causing contracting and expanding ,60 sleeve telescoped onto the lead-feeding stem l 15 and has in its lower end portion a longi-V Y 7, and at which time the screw thread 8 rides movements of said inner casing member. A coarse adjustment of the lead a' to retract the same may be had by drawing the two casing members 6 and 7 apart, and at which time thesameratchet-like action takes place between the threads 8 and 9.

Heretofore, pencils of this type have been found objectional due to the fact that vthe leads will be forced back into the pencil by endwise pressure applied to the outer projecting ends thereof such as writing. To overcome this objectionable feature, I provde automatic means, operated by pressure produced on a lead in a direction to force the samebaclrinto the pencil, to hold the casing `members vagainst a relative longitudinal adjustment tending to yproduce suchmovement. This automatic. means, as shown, includes a truncated expanding member 23 having an axial hole through which the lead-feeding stem15 loosely extends.

Below the expanding member 23 the leadfeeding stem 15 is upset to form a stop or abutment .24 on which said member rests. Said expanding member 23 extends into the lower end of the inner casing member 6 for expanding the same. Before theinncr casing member 6 is telescoped into the outer casing member77, .the expanding member 23 is so held by the lead-.feeding stem 15 from the plate 16 as to expand said inner casing, as shown in Fig. 2, and in which 'posit-ion the edges thereof at the slit 21 are in diverging relation. The expanding member 23 is selfcentering `in the .inner casing member 6 and thereby holds the lead-feeding stem axially centered .in the casingv members 6 and 7.

To insert the inner casing member 6 telescopically Yinto the outer casing 7, said inner1 casing ymember must be contracted thereby slightly forcing the expanding member 23 th e1efro1n,and which Yaction `buckles the spring plate 26 and placesthe same under spring tension tending to draw the expanding member 23 into the inner casing member 6 and thereby expand the same into frictional contact with the `outer casing member 7 with the threads 8 and 9 interlocked. 'With the expanding member 23 ythus held, the casing members 46 and 7 may be relatively, longitudinally adjusted by a screw action produced by the interlocked threads 8 and 9.

` Tjhe casing member 7 may be also relatively longitudinally adjusted to produce step by step lead-feeding action by straight end pressure applied to the casing member 6 to telescope the same into the casing 'member 7. Such pressure will cause the screw thread 8 to ride over the screw thread 9 with a ratchet-like action and such movement is vpermitted by the contracting movement of inner casing member 6, the expanding member 23, due to the pressure applied thereto by said member, will be slightly forced out of the casing member 6 by further springing or buckling the plate 16. During the expanding movement 'of the inner casing member 6, the spring plate .16 will .drawthelexpanding member 23 into the inner casing member 6. It will thus be seen that the casing members Gand 7 may be readily adjusted by screw 'threads to produce a tine adjustment of the lead, or they may be adjusted to produce a step by step coarse adjustment thereof simply by straight-line telescopical movement of one of said members in respect to the other. Y

yln case pressure is applied to the outer end of the lead tending to force the same back into the pencil, said pressure will force the expanding member v23 into the casing member 6 and thereby further expand the same and prevent contracting movement of j-the 1ifnner casing member and hold the-casingsections 6 and 7 together 'by frictionalengagement and the interlocled screw threads .8 and 9.

A clip 24 is attached to the inne-r casing member 6 for holding the pencilfin a pocket, Referring now to the modification shown in Fig. 5, the structure'and action ofthe pen'- cil is thesame as that just described, with the exception that a stiff washer or plate25 is substituted for the spring plate 16, andthe lead-feedingstem 26 ismadeof spring .metal and bent laterally at 27 to form .a `spring section under strain to lift the expanding member 23 into the inner casing member 6 and expand the same.

The inner-casing member 6 affords a chamber for spare leads and the expanding anember r23 forms the bottom thereof. Spare leads may be inserted into this chamber or removed therefrom by removing'the eraser 11 or through the-slit 21. It will be noted that thespring plate 16 shown in Fig. 3 as well as the washer25 are relatively narrow so as `not lto rinterfere with the insertion of the spare leads into the compartment provided therefore'or the removal of thesame therefrom. f

What I claim is:

1. A pencil including a casing and a relatively longitudinally adjustable lead-'feeding member, and means includinga normally released device for locking` the lead-feeding member to the casing, said device beingarranged to be operated by a movement of the lead-feeding member Vproduced by Ypressure on the lead in said vmember tending to force the same back into vthe pencil.

2. A pencil including a casing-comprising a pair of relatively longitudinally .adjustable members, a lead-'feeding member arranged to partake of such adjustmentwith oneof s aid members to produce 'either a leadprojecting or a lead-retracting movement,

and means including a normally released device for locking the lead-feeding member to the casing and arranged to be operated by a movement of the lead-feeding device produced by pressure on the lead in said member tending to force the same back into the pencil.

3. A pencil including a casing comprising relatively longitudinally adjustable telescopically connected inner and outer casing members, said inner casing member being adapted to be expanded into contact with the outer casing member, a lead-feeding stem attached to the inner casing member for longitudinal adjustment therewith, and an expanding device on the lead-feeding stein arranged to be operated to expand the inner casing member into contact with the outer casing member, by a movement of the leadfeeding member produced by pressure on the lead in said member tending to force the same back into the pencil, to hold said members against relatively longitudinal adjustment.

4. A pencil including a casing comprising relatively longitudinally adjustable telescopically connected inner and outer mem-y bers, a lead-feeding stem attached to the inner casing member for longitudinal adjustment therewith, said inner member being adapted to be expanded into contact with said outer member, and an expanding member on the lead-feeding stem arranged to bc operated by a movement of the lead-feeding i member produced by pressure on the lead in the lead-feeding stem tending to force the same back into the pencil, to expand said inner member into contact with said outer member and hold the casing members against relativelyA longitudinal adjustment.

5. The structure deined in claim 4 in which the expanding member is mounted in the inner end of the inner casing member for .self-centering action in respect to the inner which said lead-feeding stem is adapted to yield to permit the expanding member to move under the contracting action of the inner casing member.

8. A pencil including a casing comprising relatively longitudinally adjustable telescopically connected inner and outer members, a lead-feeding stem attached to said inner member for longitudinal adjustment therewith, said inner member being adapted to be expanded into contact with said outer members, an expanding member seated in said inner member and arranged to expand the same into frictional contact with said outer member by pressure produced on the lead in the lead-feeding stem tending to force the same back into the pencil, to hold said members against relatively longitudinal adjustment, and yielding means operative on the lead-feeding stem tending to cause the expanding member to expand said inner member or permit said expanding member to move under the contracting action of said inner member to release the same from the outer member.

9.V A pencil including a casing comprising relatively longitudinally adjustable telescopically connected inner and outer members, a lead-feeding stem attached to the inner casing member for longitudinal adjustment therewith, co-operating ratchet-acting means on said members for causing a step by step movement to the lead-feeding member during relatively longitudinal adjustment of the casing members, and an expanding member on the lead-feeding stem arranged to be operated by pressure produced on the lead in the lead-feeding stem tending to force the same into the pencil to hold said ratchet-acting means inactive and prevent relative longitudinal adjustment of the casing members.

10. A pencil including a casing comprising relatively longitudinally adjustable telescopically connected inner and outer members, a lead-feeding stem attached to said inner member for longitudinal adjustment therewith, said outer member having a plurality of longitudinally spaced corrugations, a bead on said inner member adapted to enter said corrugations and ride thereover with a ratchet-like action during the relative longitudinal adjustment of the casing members, said inner member being free for contracting and expanding movements, an expanding member on said stem for expand,- ing said inner member onto said outer member with the bead in one of the corrugations, and yielding means operative on said stem and under strain to cause the expanding member to expand said inner member onto said outer member or permit saidexpanding member to move under the contracting action of the inner casing to release the same from the outer casing. v

In testimony whereof I ax my signature.

FRANK J. VIERLING. 

